the apple peel
by shel
Summary: a deadly attack will change still newlywed phoebe’s life forever...
1. part 1

**CHARMED**

**"The Apple Peel"**

by shel

© july 2006

_disclaimer: the charmed ones, cole, and leo, and the rest of the cast of characters we've come to know and love, belong to spelling television, inc. and possible other copyright holders. i intended no true infringement on their copyrights; i only wanted to borrow these marvelous characters for a short time in my own scenarios and hopefully return them no worse for wear; the only things i've gained from this story are the satisfaction and pleasure of having written it and in knowing that others may have enjoyed it too…_

_rating: pg-13_

_summary: a deadly attack will change still-newlywed phoebe's life forever…_

_timeline: about ten months after phoebe marries coop…_

_archive: please don't without expressed permission…_

_notes: reference to s7's 'seven year witch,' s3's 'all halliwell's eve,' and s8's 'forever charmed'…please let me know if you enjoyed my tale and why and, if not, why not…and, please, don't bother wasting your time or mine by sending any flames…_

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Part One**_

"I love you."

Coop smiled as he held the cell phone next to his ear, "You don't have to say that every time you hang up with me."

"I just want you to know."

"Of course I know," he chuckled, "I'm a Cupid, remember? Besides that, I'm also your husband and we're connected."

"And maybe later we'll see just how well connected…"

"I love you," he grinned, mulling the different possibilities of proving that fact. So caught up by his imagination, he nearly missed a step and he grabbed for the banister which he then firmly held as he continued down the stairs.

"You don't have to keep saying that, y'know."

"Yeah, I do," he responded more seriously than her tease required.

"I'm not insecure or lost anymore," she assured him. "We love each other, Coop, and I have no doubts we're meant to be so what's wrong with saying it out loud as often as we want, whenever we want?"

"Not a thing," he replied distractedly as the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly bristled. He stepped off the last of the stairs and looked around the empty foyer. "How soon 'til you call it a day?"

"Is something wrong? Are the boys okay? Maybe you should call Pi--"

"The boys are fine and Piper needs to handle the mess at the club," he interrupted. He wished he felt as confident as he sounded instead of this wave of anxiety. "I just left Chris who's napping peacefully and Wyatt's playing in the sunroom."

"You could be playing too…"

Despite the suggestive offer, Coop recognized the wariness in her tone. "Everything's fine, Phoebe."

"Then why am I suddenly so scared?"

He frowned, unhappy to have worried her, "Has your empathy come back?"

"You know it's not fully back but like you just said, we're connected. C'mon, Coop, I hear it in your voice. Something's wrong. Y'know, it'll be faster if you come here and pick me up."

He shook his head, "No, sweetie, we're fine here and you need to stay at work. You can't tell me Elise isn't thrilled that for weeks you haven't run out in the middle of the day for a family emergency."

"So I'll say I'm not feeling well."

"Nothing's --"

"I can afford to take the rest of the afternoon."

"Nothing's going on, Phoebe. The boys are fine. I'm fine."

"Coop…"

"I love you, Phoebe," he declared. "See you soon." He'd barely heard her reply in kind when he disconnected the call and shoved the phone into his pocket. He continued to scan the doorways though unsure of what he expected to find.

A sudden wave of hatred flowed through him and he staggered as he rushed to the sunroom. "Wyatt, put up your shield!"

When he lurched into the sunroom, he found Wyatt alone, silently watching him from within the protective bubble. "Good boy, Wyatt." But before he could take a step towards the youngster, a powerful force hit him from behind, throwing him across the room, sending him crashing into the wicker furniture. Dazed, he shook his head to clear it as he scrambled to his knees and yelled to Wyatt, "Go to Chris and shield him!"

Wyatt immediately obeyed and Coop was about to follow in order to bring the boys to safety when he was hit again by a wave of energy. Smacking his head against an end table, he was too stunned to react when he was suddenly grabbed and lifted off the ground by his shoulders. Talons pierced them and shook him as if he weighed nothing at all.

His nose wrinkled from the overwhelming smell of sulfur and rotten eggs behind him and he tried to jerk free but new sets of claws now dug into his ribs. His vision blurred with stinging tears and his heart seized when he realized what was attacking. A Terrdestruamor. Not that the Cupids called their enemy by that name. No, "leech" was more appropriate and, as Coop's unsuccessful struggles to free himself were proving, this attack was no different than cases in the past.

Pain radiated from each spot the claws drew blood and he squeezed his eyes shut, gritting his teeth. Even worse, though, were the waves of negative emotions that began pulsating through him. "Damn Phoebe for not coming home."

His eyes popped open with immediate shame and regret. It wasn't him. It wasn't how he felt. Phoebe was the light of his life, his soul. It was the leech. It was part of the attack. Flood the victim with negative emotions while drawing out all the positive ones until nothing remains of the victim's true soul. "Oh, Phoebe, I'm sorry," he groaned as the creature dug deeper, getting a tighter grip on his body.

Already, hopelessness was filling him. There would be no escape. "No." That was the leech talking. He couldn't give up. He wouldn't. Phoebe needed him. They needed each other. "I love you, Phoebe." Instead of the pain, he concentrated on her. Focusing his energy on love, his love for her, gave him the strength he needed to twist himself free.

Though not without cost. Panting, sweat pouring down his face, Coop fell to the floor, bleeding heavily from the places where the claws had torn skin from his body. He didn't have the strength to transport to safety and had managed to crawl only a foot or two away before he felt a sharp sting to the side of his neck as it was suddenly yanked back. Caught in the vice of the claws once again, his neck now tethered to the demon, he succumbed to the agonizing pain after a last-ditch fruitless struggle and he collapsed limply in the demon's grip.

Unable to fight it any longer, he felt his very essence being pulled from within him and, as consciousness slipped away, the image of Phoebe, radiant at their wedding ceremony, filled his mind and he barely heard the sound of a distant scream before it all went dark.

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"Chopping knife!" Paige demanded before she hurled the orbed item at the demon attacking her brother-in-law. From the corner of her eye, she saw Phoebe standing next to her frozen with horror. Her ears still ringing from Phoebe's scream, her eyes riveted to Coop's torn body, it hadn't yet registered that the insect-like creature was sucking some sort of pink energy from Coop's neck through the tentacle extended from its torso.

The knife was uselessly sticking out of the demon's body. Paige thought it didn't even realize it was injured and immediately called for another of Piper's knives. This time, her attack was met with a high-pitched series of angry clicking sounds.

Simultaneously, Phoebe had snapped from her shocked state and launched herself at the demon hurting her husband. But, to her renewed horror, while her successful attack had torn the creature from Coop, blood now gushed from his neck.

Sprayed with her husband's blood, fury replaced fear and she began pummeling the demon. Unconcerned by the scratches and gouges she was receiving in return, she managed to grab each of the knives from its side and began stabbing at the tough skin. Not even hearing the high-pitched shrieks, she attacked with a vengeance until the demon finally burst apart in a rain of black confetti that turned to ash the moment it touched the floor.

Knocked to the floor, it took Phoebe a moment to recover and, when she did, she raced back to her husband's side where Paige was already attempting to heal him. Not wanting to interfere with Paige's aid, she simply squeezed Coop's hand tightly, "I love you. Don't leave me. We're meant to be, you can't leave me now. I love you, Coop. Please stay with me. We have our whole lives ahead of us. Please don't leave me…Please…"

Though she concentrated on the worst wound, Coop's neck, it didn't take long for Paige to realize she'd be unable to save him. She glanced at her pleading sister and her heart ached knowing that Phoebe was, once again, about to lose the man she loved. Taking a deep breath she tried again and, as she concentrated solely on Coop and sealing the wound, her hands glowed once more. But the glow wasn't as strong as it should have been and Coop was still bleeding heavily. With a tearful sigh, she knew Coop had only minutes left and, wanting to give her sister some semblance of privacy, Paige withdrew her hands and began to move away.

"Wait, what're you doing?" Phoebe gasped when she realized her sister had scooted back. "He's still bleeding." When Paige didn't answer and couldn't look her in the eyes, she shook her head in denial and squeezed Coop's hand tighter, pressing it close to her heart. "No," she whispered to him. "No," she more forcefully ordered to her sister, "you come back here, Paige. You're a Whitelighter. You heal him. Now, Paige. You have to help him." But tears fell from Paige's eyes and Phoebe cried to her, "I love him. I'm begging you, Paige, please, please, help him."

Paige, trying to contain her emotions, was forced to admit, "He's dying, Phoebe."

"No!"

"Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry, but I can't help him. I wish to God I could but I can't."

"Then, dammit, get someone who can!"

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	2. part 2

_**Part Two**_

"Well, this was unexpected," Coop commented as he watched his wife cradle his body, rocking it as she sobbed.

"That's what makes dying so much fun."

Coop spun in surprise to face the person who spoke. "You should know."

"Ouch."

"Cole Turner, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I exist here," Cole coolly replied. At the Cupid's raised eyebrow he acknowledged, "Not specifically in the manor but in limbo which exists on another --"

"I know about limbo," Coop interrupted. "Every Cupid grieves over charges that are lost to limbo. And at the risk of repeating myself, what the hell are you doing here?"

Cole eyed the newcomer and recognized a compatriot when he saw one. The Cupid loved Phoebe and that love was returned and no one knew more than he what that felt like and what it meant. "I felt her pain and didn't want her to be alone when you died," he admitted.

"What do you mean you felt her pain?"

"It doesn't matter," Cole told him.

"It does to me," Coop insisted before his eyes widened in realization, "You're still connected to her. Even in limbo…I didn't think that was possible for anyone."

There was no bragging in his tone when Cole stated with a shrug, "I'm not anyone. However, the only question before us is why you're here when," he indicated to Phoebe, "the two of you are meant to be together."

Coop's gaze narrowed on his wife's first husband, "You say that as if you mean it."

"I do. I want Phoebe to be happy," Cole shrugged again. "It's all I've ever wanted." Almost as an afterthought, he added, "Which's why we have to figure out how to save you. That was a leech, wasn't it?"

"No Cupid has ever survived a leech attack," Coop verified. "I felt my essence being pulled out and the damage was done before Phoebe and Paige ever reached me. That body's just a shell housing negative energy and emotions waiting for orders."

"But Phoebe vanquished the leech," Cole pointed out. "It can't alert the demon that sent it in order to control you so your body's safe for the moment."

"If a demon sent it," Coop sighed. "Sometimes, leeches are just lucky in sniffing out a Cupid."

"Well," Cole considered, "it has been relatively demon-free around the manor for the past few months."

"You've been watching?"

"Now and then. Don't worry, I'm not spying on Phoebe," Cole said a bit too defensively. "But we're going off-topic. Without worrying about a demon coming to control your body, how will you siphon off the leech's energies when we get you back?"

Coop stared once again at the man who still held a piece of his wife's heart. "Why do you care? If you're here in limbo, you're here for eternity. Why try to help me go back to Phoebe? What's in it for you?"

"I told you," Cole frowned at him, "Phoebe's happiness. She loves you and wants to be with you. She deserves to be with you."

"You really do love her," Coop realized with more than a bit of wonder.

"Not much of a Cupid," Cole sniffed with distaste, "if you're only now figuring that out."

But Coop was still amazed, "After all you did to her, after all she put you through, you truly do love her."

"And I always will," Cole curtly replied as he suddenly shifted his gaze back to Phoebe. "I've never made a secret of it."

"Then maybe we've just learned why I'm here." Cole turned around again as he added, "Maybe we can help each other and, in turn, make Phoebe happy."

"I'm listening," Cole warily said.

"Once I leave here," Coop began, "and return to my body, I'm not going to recover. There's not enough left of me to fight the leech's energies and I will die. But you…If you came with me maybe I --"

"What?" The word exploded from Cole. "Are you crazy?"

"You're strong, Cole. Merging our souls might be the key to fighting through the evil that remains."

"At the risk of repeating myself," Cole sneered, "are you crazy?"

"Think about it," Coop eagerly suggested, "you spent your life, over a century, as a demon acting on those very emotions that a leech thrives on. You would have the strength to handle what the leech's left behind. My remaining soul could help guide you to deal with them, create a balance, until you'd be rid of them. I might actually become the first Cupid to survive a leech attack."

"No."

"But it could --"

"I won't be subject to a split nature," Cole spat, "not ever again. I won't spend my days coping with two halves vying for control. I won't."

"But that's not --"

"No."

"It won't be like Belthazor or the Source," Coop exclaimed with exasperation. "It won't be you versus me. Our souls will have merged to create a new single one, one that would have both our memories and experiences. One that would share each of our strengths and --"

"And weaknesses," Cole harshly reminded him.

But Coop was determined to convince him, "There wouldn't be any conflict, at least none that wouldn't be natural and expected as --"

"Even if," Cole uttered, "even if I considered this half-assed scheme of yours, Phoebe would see right through it." Cutting off Coop's protest, he immediately continued, "We know each other too well and she would kill me before she'd let me be you. She loved me once but she's moved on and her heart belongs to you now."

"And do you think her heart will survive losing me?" Coop countered. "I know her too, Cole, and I know that if we don't do this she'll lose faith in love, in herself, and she'll end up here in limbo…with you. So why not be with her in life? Do this for her so she'll live. Give yourselves a chance at a happy life together."

But Cole didn't want to let himself believe in the possibility and he shook his head, "Phoebe's strong, stronger emotionally than even Piper. She'll heal and move on just as she did after I was vanquished the first time."

"Not this time," Coop argued relentlessly, "and you know it. Phoebe's had too much pain from love, experienced too much loss, and she will not recover from this. If she doesn't die heartbroken, she'll spend her life growing old alone and bitter and, in the end, she'll find herself in limbo among the lost. Her life will have been wasted. You owe it to her to save her."

"She doesn't want me. And what then," Cole angrily challenged, "she'll become lost anyway and end up in limbo but then she'd be alone because I'd be alive and stuck in your damned body."

"You'd never let that happen," Coop assured him. "You love her, Cole. And what's more, she loves you. Don't look at me like that. You know it's true."

"The blood loss has gotten to you," Cole scoffed as he folded his arms across his chest in annoyance.

"I'm a Cupid. I know her heart."

"So do I!" If only he could blast the Cupid back to his body. "Phoebe loves you. She wants her future, her family, to be with you."

"I know. And I love her but I can't stop this from happening. I told you before, no Cupid has ever survived a leech's attack." He pointed to his wife, "When I married Phoebe, I promised her that our love would grow stronger with each passing day. But, Cole, no matter how strong it is, it can't save me now. Only you can."

But Cole wouldn't be swayed, "Phoebe will understand, she's lived with sacrifices before. I won't be the one to put her through this pain. Every time she would look at me she'd know how I helped take you away from her. I won't do that to her. Or to me."

"Not even to save her?"

"I've died for her before, I'd do it again or rather," Cole quickly corrected himself, "I'd stay dead for her."

"I don't have the time to argue with you about this and knowing you as --"

"What?"

"Through Phoebe's heart and memories," Coop assured him. "You're not a taboo subject between us, Cole. We've talked about you and about your relationship with Phoebe. Like I was saying --"

"This isn't right."

"For who? I'm dying, Cole, and I'd rather die knowing Phoebe will find happiness with her true love."

"Now I know you're crazy." Cole turned from him in the hope Coop would simply return to his body and leave him be.

Coop stared at Cole's stiff back. "Remember the apple peel?"

Cole snorted, "Yeah, 'C' for Coop."

Coop ignored him, "Remember Phoebe's face when she said your name? She knew you were her future."

"She was wrong," Cole declared as he turned back to face Phoebe's husband. "Apples may be the fruit of all knowledge but that little fortunetelling with the peel is nothing more than an old wives' scam for hopeless romantics. Have you ever seen an apple peel turn into an 'M' or a 'Q'? No, it was merely a coincidence at the time. You don't have the same conflicts I had with her. You fit well together. You're the one Phoebe is meant to be with."

Undeterred, Coop recommended, "Let the 'C' stand for both Coop and Cole. We each love Phoebe and neither of us regrets a single moment of what we shared with her."

"No, I don't," Cole reluctantly admitted.

"Then help me save her, Cole," Coop earnestly requested. "Love her and she'll find her way back to you. I promise. I'm a Cupid but more than that, I know my wife and I know that you were one of her biggest regrets."

"I know," Cole rued quietly. "I hurt her worse than she'd ever been hurt before or since."

"Not what I mean. She regrets that she failed to save you," Coop clarified.

"Of course she saved me," Cole retorted. "Look where I am. Instead of being wiped from existence, which I surely deserved, I'm in limbo. I'm here because of her, because of her love for me!"

"You know that and I know that," Coop suddenly smiled, knowing he'd won, even if Cole had yet to realize it, "but it's time for Phoebe to know that."

Cole noticed Paige orb from Phoebe's side and he could feel Phoebe's grief. "You've admitted a part of your soul still remains so why are you so sure Phoebe can't help you recover on your own? Why are you so desperate for me to do this?"

"You know Phoebe's saying that everything happens for a reason?" Cole nodded and he continued, "I'm a Cupid, Cole, and I'm also happily in love with my wife. There's no reason for me to be in limbo unless it's to help set you free."

"Assuming I want to be free," Cole muttered.

"You do. And I told you before," Coop replied patiently, "I know you love each other."

"We hurt each other and both have a lot of healing to do before we can -- No, it's definitely not worth th--"

"It is worth it," Coop emphatically stated. "It's worth all the risk and the pain. You'll help each other and you'll heal together. The love is there, Cole, you simply have to trust in it. Besides, being a Cupid, it'll be a bit easier for you to --"

"What the hell does that mean!"

"Part of the package, Cole," Coop grinned. "My ring, powers, they all come with the body and what's left of my spirit."

"Not how I understand it," Cole glared at him.

"Oh? And how many Cupids have you known, dealt with?" He didn't wait for Cole to respond and patted Cole's arm, "Don't worry, you've been a lawyer so this'll be a piece of cake."

"It won't work," Cole argued. "If there's anything I learned from being completely human, it's that I need my powers. I need the strength and power and the adrenaline rush of using them. And while I may no longer be evil and would use them for evil, it doesn't mean I want some pacifistic hearts and flowers type power."

"I'm not here to debate with you the power and strength of love," Coop snapped. "You'll just have to adjust to what's comfortable for you."

"You're not listening," Cole growled. "I am not a Cupid!"

"You will be so pay attention to Lesson One," Coop ordered. "Cupids have to be strong beings in order to influence a stubborn hard-headed idiot who refuses to see what's right in front of them. Cupids have powers for a reason and can be almost as sneaky as any demon in order to accomplish their goal."

"Is that how you got Phoebe to fall for you?"

"Quit sniping," Coop demanded. "Each Cupid has his/her own personal methods in dealing with charges and you'll be no different. Do your job however you want as long as you don't hurt the very charges you're trying to help. Besides, you'll still have me to guide you along." Cole glared defiantly at him in return but Coop merely returned the gesture until he spotted Paige orb back next to Phoebe with Piper at her side. "Time's up, Cole. Accept this offer for what it is – a gift of life, of love."

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	3. part 3

_**Part Three**_

"What'd you do, Paige?" Phoebe gasped when Coop's body suddenly froze in her arms. Then she realized her older sister was standing there and, with fresh tears streaming down her cheeks, she looked up, "Piper…"

Piper quickly knelt next to Phoebe and wrapped her younger sister in her arms, "It'll only hold him for a little while, Pheebs." Kissing her sister, she added, "Leo's gone up to the Elders for help."

Phoebe nudged her sister back and gently lay her husband on the floor, reaching for one of the throw pillows and placing it under his head. "Leo should be here, helping Paige."

"He's earned the respect of the Elders," Piper reminded her sister, "so let him try up there first."

"He thought it was a leech attack," Paige piped up, "and --"

"What the hell's a leech?" Phoebe angrily wondered.

"All Leo knows is that it's a demonic enemy of the Cupids and that no Cupid has ever survived an attack," Paige reluctantly added.

Piper kept hold of Phoebe when she swayed, "Easy, Pheebs, Coop's not gone yet. I'm sure the Elders --"

"Won't do a damned thing," Phoebe snapped. "It's never been an Elder who helped."

"Not true," Paige argued. "Not every Elder --"

But Phoebe didn't want to hear and cut her off, "Always some Angel but never an Elder going out of their way to help unless something was in it for them, some risk we had to take for them."

"Phoebe…" Paige warned as she glanced up nervously at the ceiling.

"My husband's dying!" Phoebe raged before collapsing in Piper's arms. "I can't lose him, Piper, I just can't."

In a hoarse voice, Piper lied, "You won't."

"Why didn't he tell us about leeches?" Phoebe cried. "We could've protected him. Why didn't I make him come get me? If only I'd --"

"You called for me right after you hung up with him," Paige consoled. "We couldn't've gotten here any faster. This wasn't your fault, Phoebe."

"I'm the one with premonitions," Phoebe tearfully complained, "I should've known. I don't want to lose him…"

"It'll be okay, sweetie," Piper murmured, brushing Phoebe's hair, "it'll be okay."

"No, it won't," Phoebe mumbled with a sniffle, "it won't ever be okay. How many times do I have to lose the man I love? How -- love just isn't wor--"

"Don't say that!" Paige interrupted. "I know you're hurting but don't say that love isn't worth it! It is, Phoebe, and you know it. You believe in it."

"Not anymore," Phoebe whispered, burying her face in Piper's neck. "It's just not fair…"

Half a moment later, Leo orbed into the room and Piper looked up, "Anything?"

Disheartened, he informed everyone, "They listened to what I had to say but reminded me that I was returned my healing and orbing abilities as a reward for everything we went through with Billie and Christy but that I wasn't a true Whitelighter anymore and I no longer had a right to address to Council and make demands."

"Demands?" Piper uttered in surprise. "How is asking to save Coop a demand?"

"So much for respect," Phoebe mocked as she jerked herself free from Piper's arms and angrily swiped the tears from her cheeks. "Heal him, Leo. You and Paige together. I don't give a damn whether the Elders forbid it or not."

"They didn't forbid it," Leo corrected. "But they said it wouldn't work and they didn't offer any other solutions."

Paige glanced at her older sister and quietly told her brother-in-law, "We have to try."

"I've been at this a lot longer than you," Leo patiently commented as he knelt next to Coop, "and my life experience as a medic in life adds to the power but, Paige, this's never been done before."

"You're stronger than you give yourself credit for," Piper encouraged her husband. "If anyone can do this it's you with the help of a Charmed One."

"You can do it," Phoebe emphatically nodded as she squeezed Piper's hand gratefully.

"There's no guarantee, Phoebe," he cautioned. "I need you to understand, Coop may still die just like all the other Cupids who've ever been attacked by leeches."

It took a moment before Phoebe quietly acceded, "I…understand. Just, just do your best."

Leo waited for Paige to go to Coop's other side and, placing their hands over Coop's wounded neck, he nodded to his wife. Their hands glowed the instant Piper's freeze was removed.

Piper enfolded Phoebe into her arms and silently held her tense sister as they watched Leo and Paige attempt to heal Coop. It seemed like forever before his body convulsed for a split-second. "It's working," she whispered excitedly.

"C'mon, Coop, stay with me," Phoebe prayed as she grabbed for Piper's hand and squeezed it tightly.

Sweat beaded Leo's forehead and he exhaled in relief as skin finally began to knit together, closing the gaping wound. "Keep going, Paige, focus your energy."

"It's working," she uttered as her hands shook slightly. "I think he's breathing again."

"Don't lose focus," Leo advised. "Slow and steady, maintain the flow of energy."

It was another several moments before they were able to work on healing Coop's other wounds and another several long moments before Coop gasped for breath.

Breaking free from Piper, Phoebe rushed to her husband, pushing Leo aside, and pulled him into her arms, crying and hugging him as she rocked to and fro.

Piper helped Leo stand and hugged him tightly before reaching out her hand to steady her youngest sister.

Exhausted by the toll it took, Paige was still gratified by the sight of Coop returning Phoebe's embrace. Turning back to Piper and Leo, she announced in a shaky voice, "I think I'll stop by Henry's office for a while."

Understanding Paige's need to be with her own husband, Piper smiled with assurance, "Call later to check in."

After a slight squeeze to Piper's hand, Paige nodded with a weary smile and orbed out.

"Let's go check on our boys," Piper suggested to Leo as they left Phoebe and Coop alone.

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	4. part 4

_**Part Four**_

"I thought I'd lost you," Phoebe whispered in Coop's ear as she tightly held onto him.

Still in shock from his physical and emotional ordeal, he managed to tell her, "You'll never lose me, Phoebe."

Almost immediately, Phoebe shoved him back, "Why the hell didn't you warn us about leeches that could attack at any time? Didn't you think we'd be able to protect you? Didn't you --"

He cut off her rant with a kiss. A kiss he thought he'd never feel, taste, again. Breaking for air, he cupped her face between his palms, "I love you, Phoebe, and nothing will ever change that."

Placing her hands on top of his, pressing his harder against her skin, Phoebe gazed happily into his eyes and was in the midst of echoing his statement when she saw something else reflected back at her. Confused, she reached out emotionally and flinched when she was met with anger. "Coop?"

"Don't be afraid," he assured her, "it's what's left from the leech. But I can overcome it. I won't be evil." He brushed his thumb along her cheekbone and, it wasn't five seconds before he saw realization dawn in her eyes. His hands dropped from her cheeks to her elbows to keep her in place, "It's okay, Phoebe. I swear it's okay."

But she broke free anyway and demanded, "Where is he?" Scrambling to her feet she towered over him, "Where's Coop?"

"Phoebe, you're hurt," he pointed out in dismay as he got to his feet. As if on cue, she swayed but slapped away the hands he reached out to steady her. "Call Leo back. You're bleeding."

"Get the hell away from me," she ordered. But almost immediately, she threw herself at him and began pounding his chest, "What'd you do to him? What'd you do to my husband?"

Submissive to her attack, he stood his ground and, in a quiet voice, answered, "I'm here, Phoebe."

"You're not my husband," she accused. "You're not even my ex-husband. You're dead and gone and I'm married to Coop."

He gripped her shoulders lightly and insisted, "And I'm still here…We both are."

Glaring at him, she suddenly saw the truth reflected in his eyes and her anger immediately melted into confusion. Her knees buckled, "I don't understand. How is this possible?"

Guiding her to the floor, he sat facing her, keeping hold of her hands. "It's complicated."

"Explain anyway," she quietly told him, her gaze glued to his. "I need to hear it all."

"The leech caught me by surprise," he recalled, "and I didn't have a chance."

"But you're still here," she whispered, "with Cole? I don't understand."

"I broke away once but I didn't expect the pain as the leech ripped me up and, as soon as it hit my neck, it was over," he said as he tugged her into his arms. He realized it was only fear and exhaustion that overrode her temptation to fight him. Somehow, he felt it. Unconsciously he began to lightly stroke her back while she trembled. "I was overwhelmed by hate and pain and fear and I could feel my soul being sucked away. I closed my eyes, unable to fight any longer, and, next thing I knew, I was in limbo."

"Limbo?" She struggled in his arms but he held her tightly and she reluctantly gave in to the comfort. It was too much. Coop had been attacked in their home and ended up in limbo. "Limbo for the lost like when Piper was in limbo?"

"That limbo," he confirmed. "I was already there, of course, and --"

"I don't understand, Coop, how were you -- oh, you mean it was you, Cole." She shook her head, nuzzling it against his chest, "This's so confusing. Wait a minute," she suddenly raised her head, "you were already in limbo? You were there the whole time? Did you know what happened to Pi--omigod, you're the old friend! You're the one who helped Piper and Leo! Why didn't she tell me?" Without thinking, she slapped his cheek, "Why the hell didn't you?"

Bringing a hand to his stinging cheek, he couldn't help but grin, "That might've been one reason."

"You're amused by this?" she retorted as her hand shot out again.

But he caught it before she struck and, instead, leaned forward and kissed her hard, wanting to force her to remember the passion they'd once shared. But his own anger and frustration eased as he felt her struggle shift from anger to love and longing. Tenderness replaced roughness and, finally pulling away, he corrected her, "Not amused, grateful."

Phoebe brought two fingers to her now puffy lips and, slightly dazed, repeated her request, "Just tell me how you're here. How you took over Coop's body."

He thought for a moment before he finally said, "There shouldn't have been any reason for Coop to end up in limbo while Cole, on the other hand, was there atoning for a lifetime of evil."

"Helping lost souls caught between life and death," she murmured, trying to remember everything Piper had said.

"He was there because of you, y'know." When she stiffened, he clarified, "Because of your love. And because he loved you, there was still a soul to save. So he was in limbo. No conflict, an eternity to reflect and regret, but no conflict."

Phoebe glanced down at the floor and whispered, "I'm sorry."

Tipping up her chin with his index finger, he gave her a smile, "I'm not. Things happen for a reason, Phoebe. You're the one who taught me that. Limbo was where Cole needed to be. And then Coop figured out the reason he was in limbo was to help Cole."

"But why in your, I mean Coop's, body?" she wondered. "Couldn't we have set Cole's soul free or something, like we did for his father?"

Caressing her cheek, he shook his head, "Coop wouldn't have recovered from the attack. The only way to save him, the only way to save us all, was for Coop and Cole to merge souls."

Drawing herself back, she warily questioned, "What do you mean 'us all'?"

"Obviously Piper didn't tell you everything about limbo," he said before raising his hand to ward off her interruption, "because otherwise you'd have known that you were the main reason why I helped her. You needed to believe in love again and if Piper had lost Leo…"

She nodded but uneasily asked, "So what's that got to do with now?"

"After everything you'd been through," he carefully replied, "all the love you'd had and lost, what would've happened if Coop had died?" Before she spoke, he added, "The truth. What would've happened?"

"I'd've died too," she whispered, hugging herself. It had come so close to happening. When Coop was dying, she knew she wouldn't survive either. If he hadn't, if Cole hadn't... "Oh, God," she uttered before the tears fell.

He wrapped her in his arms and held her as she cried. She needed time before she could hear the rest. So he closed his eyes and merely provided comfort as best he could, all the while fighting his own inner demons that were taunting him.

She felt his struggle, his yearning to love and protect against the urge to hurt her. And she instinctively rubbed his back and murmured, "It'll be okay."

Surprised by her actions, he straightened and abruptly pulled back. "I hate it when you read me like that."

"Like what?" she wondered in confusion.

"Like you know everything I'm thinking, feeling." He quickly got to his feet, "Stay away from me. Leave me the hell alone."

"No," she argued softly, "I won't, not when you're hurt. Let me help you."

"Who?" he challenged. "Cole…or Coop? You can't help one without the other, y'know. You can't want to save just one of us. And if you want to hurt one, you hurt both. Although maybe that's what you want. Maybe some revenge for the past. Maybe you'd rather sacrifice us both for you to finally be rid of --"

"Stop it!" She covered her ears with her hands, "Stop it. Why are you doing this to me? Haven't you hurt me enough? Haven't you scared me enough?"

Holding his hand out to her, he apologized, "The leech's energies are still so strong. That wasn't me."

"Wasn't who?" she complained as she stood. "How do I know where Coop begins and where Cole ends? How do I --"

"I don't know!" he exclaimed with frustration. "I don't have the answers, Phoebe! Hell, I didn't even want this to happen but it was the only way to save you! You're not the only one who has to deal with our decision. Both Coop and Cole have to adjust too. We have to learn how to be one person so is it really too much for you to give just one damned ounce of support?"

She hung her head, "I'm sorry." Without thinking about what she was doing, she stepped close to him and slid her arms around his waist. "I'm so sorry."

"It was Coop's idea," he quietly told her as he accepted her warmth and affection, "but Cole agreed even at the risk of you kicking us out of your life for good."

"I'd never do that," she shook her head.

"To Coop?" he considered, "Probably not. But to Cole? I'm not so sure."

She arched back to look up at him, "But you're the same person now, aren't you?"

"Our souls merged into this body," he nodded, "and we've still got our memories. It's just that the lines blur. Coop can recall something Cole did as clearly as if he had done it himself."

"Even…" Phoebe couldn't finish the thought.

But he knew what she'd been thinking and nodded, "Even as Belthazor or the Source. But the reverse is also true. Cole can remember and feel the gratification of helping two people fall in love as surely as if he'd been there."

"Complicated," she sighed before she stepped out of his arms and a few feet back. She gazed at him for a long moment before admitting, "I'm not sure what to do next. I know you want support but I'm…This's…It's just so…"

"Tell me," he encouraged, though remaining at a distance.

"Cole was," she thought for a moment, "he was the love of my life. I've never loved another man the way I loved him, not even Coop. But there was so much anger and fear at the end that I barely recovered what happened to us, to him. Eventually I did and I found love again but it wasn't until Coop that I realized my heart was still closed."

"Drake?"

"Drake helped," she acknowledged, "and there are times I regret we didn't have more time together but that only proved my point. Why let someone into your heart if they only break it?"

"Oh, Phoebe…"

She felt his pain on her behalf and wanted to close the gap between them, to have him wrap his arms around her and tell her this was nothing but a bad dream. But it wasn't a dream, it was real, and she stayed where she was as she continued, "Coop opened my heart and, despite my best efforts not to, I fell in love with him. And my love only grew with each passing day. And now you're telling me that the only way to save Coop was for Cole to come back? How do I live with both of you without betraying one of you?"

"I don't have the answer, Phoebe," he shrugged helplessly. "All I ask is that you listen to your heart."

"I need time," she said as she backed further away. "Forgive me but I can't be here right now. I know it's terrible of me because I'm your wife and because you need to fight the leech's effects but I can't help you. I'm not strong enough. I'm sorry. I'm so…I'm so sorry…"

He didn't say anything and he remained his spot while she fled the room. As disappointed as he was, he actually understood and wasn't about to make matters worse by going after her. That's where Cole had screwed up after escaping the Wasteland. This time he'd give Phoebe the time she needed. But Phoebe wasn't the only one who needed time. "And I may as well start using it right now," he said to himself as he concentrated on transporting himself far away from the manor.

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	5. part 5

_**Part Five**_

_**Six Months Later…**_

"Hey you," Piper greeted as she practically sat on her younger sister. "Why aren't you playing with them?"

Phoebe looked across the sunroom at her husband and Chris as she inched over on the wicker sofa to make room for her sister. The youngster had just gleefully knocked down the tower he'd so carefully built and she smiled with amusement.

"Uncle Coop," Wyatt called out from his side of the room, "look!" He pointed excitedly to his own tower of blocks.

"Good job, Wyatt, now make it rise off the floor with your power."

"Wyatt, now is not the time for practicing magic. Coop, stop encouraging him," Piper warned.

"He needs to be encouraged," Phoebe piped up.

"That's not what I mean and you know it," Piper chastised. "There's a time and a place for everything."

Turning to Wyatt, he chuckled, "Next time, kiddo, right now, Mom has spoken."

Piper watched Wyatt pout for a moment before returning to his tower and she had to admit to her sister, "Coop really is great with the boys." She watched Chris scramble over Coop in an effort to get to the train engine lying on the floor behind Coop and she cautiously commented, "He seems better now, don't you think?"

"Chris?"

"Coop." She eyed her younger sister, "So do you, for that matter."

"I don't understand," Phoebe lied.

"Phoebe," Piper drew out each syllable. "I'm your older sister and I know you. Something happened six months ago when Coop was attacked, something that changed you both." Phoebe merely shrugged so Piper persisted, "What happened, sweetie? I know that Coop's the first Cupid to have ever survived a leech attack but he disappeared on you for four weeks, popping in only that one night when you'd been hurt. And then when he finally came back for good, it was like he was a different person."

"The leech left behind a lot of negative emotions," Phoebe reminded her. "Someone like Coop wasn't used to handling it and he needed time to adjust."

"It was more than that," Piper sighed. "I understood the sharp retorts and sniping insults because that wasn't really Coop talking. But he even kept his distance from the boys and --"

"He didn't want to scare them," Phoebe prompted. "They were too young to understand what was going on."

"It was like he was wary and, at times unsure, of us I mean," Piper continued. "Sometimes there'd be flashes of confidence or maybe arrogance but then he'd go silent as if he was hurting because he remembered something awful."

"He'd been through an ordeal," Phoebe conceded, "and it was a rough time for him trying to readjust."

"For you too," Piper pointed out. "You think I didn't notice how quiet you became? Or how your appetite changed? Or how you were almost afraid to go home alone with Coop?"

"I wasn't afraid," Phoebe insisted. "I've never been afraid of my husband."

Piper didn't quite believe her but didn't push, "Well, I was. Even Paige wanted to --"

"Paige was scared too?"

"Don't feel bad, Pheebs," Piper patted her arm, "I'm only telling you now because we've both seen that things have changed for the better, how happy you are now."

"Why didn't you say something back then?" Phoebe wondered.

"Because you didn't," she shrugged. "And I didn't want you to think I was just some high-strung older sister who --"

"You are my high-strung older sister," Phoebe teased.

Piper lightly slapped her sister's arm, "You know what I mean. I didn't want you to think I was making an issue out of nothing."

"Your being worried about me isn't 'nothing'," Phoebe told her.

"But it wasn't necessarily my business," Piper acknowledged. "Coop came so close to dying and who was I to interfere in his recovery? I figured, well, I hoped, you'd come to me if you needed anything."

"Of course I would," Phoebe hugged her sister. "I love you, Piper, and I love the security I feel in knowing that I can come to you for any reason at any time but this," she pulled back, "this was something we needed to deal with alone."

"I know and I understand."

"I do love him," Phoebe murmured as she watched her husband in a losing tickling match to both Wyatt and Chris, "I love him more than I ever thought possible."

"That's how I feel about Leo, y'know," Piper agreed. "Guess that's the way it is between couples who are simply meant to be."

"You really believe that?"

"You bet," Piper nodded emphatically. "You, me, Paige, we've found the men we're meant to spend the rest of our lives with. Together, there's no stopping us."

"I love you," Phoebe hugged her sister. "You're still high-strung but I love you."

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"Then marry me."

Phoebe stiffened in bed for a moment before she rolled over in his arms to face him, "We're already married. Remember our surprise anniversary party that Piper and Paige threw us four months ago?"

Propping himself up on his elbow, he ran his fingers along her bare shoulder, "It was for you and Coop."

"You are Coop," she grinned before sneaking a kiss to his lips.

But his playful mood had disappeared, "Then why do you call me Cole in the privacy of our bedroom?"

Unsure of what had just changed, Phoebe tugged the bed sheet a little higher as she settled back against the headboard, "Because we never told my sisters the truth about what you both did."

"You're still treating us as two separate people," he rebuked.

"I'm not," she denied. "Sure, there're times when I can tell if you're behaving more like one than the other but you know why I call you Cole when we're here." He was silent and she sighed in frustration before she proceeded to explain, "For obvious reasons, you're Coop to the rest of the world so this's the only way I can make sure you know I haven't forgotten who you are." Almost as an afterthought, she added, "That I've accepted who you are."

"And I appreciate that," he honestly replied as he brushed his fingertips along her cheek, "I do. But it's not ab--"

"You want to tell them," she suddenly accused.

"Don't you think they deserve to know the truth?" he countered.

"We've been over this, Cole," she griped. "We've had such a rough time dealing with our own issues and've barely had time to really enjoy being together. How long did it take after the leech attack 'til we made love for the first time? I'll tell you, it was five months, Cole."

"We had to wait for the right moment," he admitted.

"That's right," she agreed, "we needed time, even if it meant not celebrating our wedding anniversary the way we'd planned months before the leech attack. We still needed time to learn about each other, to trust each other. And, last month, last month when it suddenly felt so right, it was --"

"Magical," he completed for her with a smile.

She returned a smile that quickly faded, "But we're still learning and I don't want to ruin it all now by dredging up the past with Piper and Paige."

He reached for her hand and brought it to his lips for a light kiss. "Your sisters are both happily married so give them some credit, Phoebe, for letting you do what's best for you and your marriage."

"That isn't it," she claimed as she yanked her hand free.

"Why are you still so afraid?" He slammed the pillow and sat up, "No, don't deny it. We're connected, Phoebe, and I can feel your fear. But nothing will happen, not if we stand together…or is that the problem? Are you ashamed of your love for Cole? Are you sorry Coop ever proposed the merging of souls? That's it, isn't it, you're --"

"How dare you!" She scrambled off the bed, angrily tugging the sheet around her, "I love Coop with all my heart, and I love Cole as much now as I did six years ago, if not more, and I can't believe you'd propose to me if you didn't believe that! You're a Cupid, for God's sake!"

"That doesn't mean I'm not also a man who's lost confidence!" he blurted out.

"What's that mean?" she exclaimed in disbelief. "You're one of the most confident, most centered, people I know!"

"It means," he tried to calm his tone, "that both Coop and Cole took a huge risk for you. Neither one of us knew what the result would be or how hard the adjustment would be not to mention how hard it would be to find our way back to you. Don't you think I still have doubts whether we made the right choice?"

Phoebe froze in her spot and gaped at him in surprise, "Of course you did. I'd've died without you."

"That's where Coop and Cole disagreed," he revealed with a shrug. "Coop believed that but Cole had faith in you. He believed you were the strongest woman he knew and that you would survive even losing Coop."

"Oh, baby," Phoebe uttered as she crawled back on the bed to sit next to him, "the only thing that'd've happened would've been that I end up in limbo…Guess I would've ended up with Cole anyway, huh." She reached for his hand and squeezed it as she brought it to her heart, "You made the right choice, for me, for you, for us. I love you, both of you. In the past six months we've grown so much, Cole. We've grown stronger individually but, even more important, we've grown stronger together. The way you complete me, the way we're sometimes so in sync it's like we're one person, it's the most --"

"What?" He leaned forward in concern when she'd jerked back slightly. "A premonition?"

"No," she suddenly smiled, "just a little flashback to when Wyatt and Chris came from the future and let it slip that I married you, Coop." She chuckled, "I think that's what they said, that we were so close and so in sync, we were almost like one. Funny how the future works out after all…"

"Some things are just meant to be," he agreed, letting his fingers trail up and down her arm.

"Sure would've been nice if that apple peel came with instructions," she complained.

He barked out a laugh and shook his head as he gave her arm a gentle squeeze, "I love you, Phoebe."

"I know and I know you know that I know which's why you know that I would be proud to become your wife...again."

"I think I almost understood that."

"Then understand this, again and again and again I would marry you both in a heartbeat."

"Then come here, witch," he demanded as he grabbed her and pulled her on top of him, "and prove it."

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	6. epilogue

_**Epilogue**_

_**Three Months Later…**_

"A baby," he uttered in awe. "A little girl…Your little girl, from your premonitions." He didn't think he could smile any wider.

"Maybe not," she cautioned. "The future's always changing so we may not have--"

"I don't care," he happily interrupted as he yanked her back into his arms and kissed the top of her head. "I don't care as long as she, or he, is healthy."

"What're we gonna do?" Phoebe sighed as she scanned their living room. "We may have to move. I mean once the baby's a bit bigger, we'll need more space. I mean I know we have the second bedroom but it's so small and what happens if we have another baby and --"

"Another one?" he chuckled. "We haven't had this one yet."

But Phoebe was lost in thought and continued in a rush as if she hadn't heard, "Do you think we should start looking? And what about my sisters? They'll be so excited and -- My sisters! Maybe you were right after all. About confessing the truth my sisters, I mean. I mean we can't keep calling you Coop and Cole. It'll be too --"

"There's only one name I want to be called now," he interrupted again with a shake of his head.

"What?" she nervously asked. "I'll go with whatever you decide. I mean I guess we should stick to Coop but I think I'll miss calling you Cole. Isn't that silly? Because I know you're Coop and I know you're Cole but I kinda liked this little thing we have where it's just private between the two of --"

"Is this a hormone thing?" he questioned with amusement. "You babbling, I mean."

"Not funny," she slapped his chest and pulled back enough to be able to fold her arms across her chest in annoyance. "Fine. What name did you decide on?"

He grinned as he replied, "Daddy."

And Phoebe burst into tears.

Laughing, he wrapped his arms around her again and kissed the top of her head again. "Hormones," he decided.

"I love you," she cried. "Both of you."

He bent his head in order to whisper in her ear, "Then marry me."

"Again?" she sniffled before she glanced up at him.

"Again," he stated as he straightened and tapped the tip of her nose. "I ask and you say yes, that's how it works."

"You're crazy," she declared as she tried to pull away.

"So I keep telling myself," he muttered as he kept a firm grip on her.

Unable to keep a straight face, Phoebe burst into a coy smile, "Then how about we skip the vows and go straight to the honeymoon?"

"I'm serious."

"So am I, Cole," she agreed. "We don't need to keep renewing our vows to prove our love to each other because that proof is already right here," she reasoned as she guided his hand to her still-flat stomach. "This new life growing inside me was created by our love. That's more important than any ceremony, any vow, we could ever make."

"I still can't believe this is happening. Never in my life did I ever think this could happen to me," he confided with renewed awe.

"Oh, Coop, if there was anyone meant to be a father…" She caressed his cheek and, with a radiant smile, asked, "Do you, Coop, take Phoebe to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, honor, and cherish her for all eternity?"

"I suppose…"

"Behave yourself, Cole. This was your idea…"

"I love you, Phoebe," he winked.

"Then do you, Cole, take Phoebe to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, honor, and cherish her for all eternity?"

"I do." Kissing her lightly on the lips, he then asked, "So, do you, Phoebe, take both Coop and Cole to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love, honor, and cherish him for all eternity?"

She gazed deep into his eyes, "I'm not sure."

"What?"

"Gotcha," she giggled.

"Oh, you'll pay for that, witch," he threatened as he tried to keep his arms around her slippery form.

"I'm counting on it," she laughed as she successfully darted out of his reach.

He caught up with her just as she'd flung open their bedroom door and, scooping her up into his arms, he carried her to their bed and lightly tossed her onto the comforter.

Using her elbows to scoot back, she watched him stand at the foot of the bed before inviting him, "C'mere you."

"Maybe we shouldn't," he hesitated.

Phoebe smiled, "I already asked and the doctor said it's perfectly fine for us up until the very end."

"Are you sure?"

She rolled her eyes before she changed positions and, on her knees, scooted back to the edge of the bed. Tugging on his shirt, she drew him closer. But he still seemed so unsure so she began to unbutton his shirt, kissing bare skin as she moved from one button to the next.

He watched her and believed. "You are my wife," he quietly told her before climbing onto the bed.

"And you," she paused to tenderly kiss his lips, "are my husband."

And, gently pressing her down to the mattress beneath him, he murmured words of love before they, together, they made wedding night magic.

_**The End**_


End file.
